Carrier for a two wheeled vehicle

ABSTRACT

A bike carrier that retains the wheels of a bike in a tray between pivoting retention arms with ratchets that hold the arms against the tires. The retention arms are quickly adjustable for different sized tires without tools. An embodiment provides a bike wheel main tray assembly pivotally mounted on a trailer hitch drawbar at an operational horizontal position and a compact vertical position selectable via a trigger at the back of the tray assembly. The main wheel tray assembly has a tray for each wheel of a bike. The two trays pivot between a compact position for shipping and storage and an operational position that is automatically locked. An add-on tray assembly provides wheel trays for a second bike. It connects to the main tray assembly without tools, and provides a trigger at the back connected to the pivot selector of the main tray assembly.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to carriers for two-wheeled vehicles, andparticularly to bicycle carriers for mounting on a motor vehicle roofrack or trailer hitch receiver.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Racks for carrying bikes on motor vehicles often use hangers, clamps,straps, or cams to hold the bike in the rack. These require multipleoperations to secure or release the bike. Hangers and clamps can mar thefinish of a bike assembly during vibration of a traveling vehicle.Straps are subject to loosening, tearing, and deterioration.

Bike wheels should not be free to spin in the slipstream of a motorvehicle, and the steering wheel of the bike should not be free to turn.Otherwise, damage to the bike and/or the motor vehicle can result. Manyracks do not inherently secure the wheels, relying on the competence anddiscretion of the user to do so with straps.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,608 (Graber) shows a folding bike carrier mounted onthe rear of a vehicle. Each wheel is strapped to a tray, and the bikeassembly is clamped to the carrier. This design secures the wheels, butthe straps and clamps have the disadvantages described above.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,659,762 (Kravitz) shows a bike carrier with deep wellsfor holding a bike by its wheels. The bike must be strapped to thewells, since it is not clamped by them. Otherwise the bike could flyupward during a bump in the road. There is no adjustment for differentsized bikes, so the wells are a loose fit, requiring straps to eliminateplay of the bike within the wells.

Some bike carriers require removal of the front wheel, and bolting orclamping of the front dropouts to the carrier. This is inconvenient,even with a quick-release hub on the bike and/or a quick-release dropoutclamp on the carrier. The front wheel must be strapped individually tothe carrier or stowed elsewhere, possibly bending the rim or spokes, orscratching the carrier or vehicle.

The present inventor has commercial success with a bike carrierdescribed in part in U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,074, filed May 6, 1995. Sincethis patent issued the inventor has improved the design, added a trailerhitch receiver embodiment, and is selling both roof rack and hitchreceiver versions through his company, 1 up USA. The carrier describedherein incorporates aspects from the above patent '074, plus interveningimprovements that have been on sale for more than a year, and furtherimprovements that have not been publicly disclosed. Interveningimprovements applicable to both the roof rack and the hitch receiverversions include the following:

a) Wheel retention arms with two parallel side arms and a cross member,which, in combination, form an H-shape or inverted U-shape depending onthe position of the cross member, which can be adjusted for differentsized bike tires. Adjustment requires a wrench and is limited to aselection of alternate bolt holes on the parallel side arms. It is notinfinitely adjustable.

b) The pivotal position of each wheel retention arm is controlled by alinear ratchet with shallow, symmetric ratchet teeth. The pawl can beover-rotated by the user in the release direction, causing drag on thepawl movement while opening the wheel retention arms.

A trailer hitch receiver version of the bike carrier with the followingfeatures has been on sale for over a year.

a) A main tray assembly with two aligned bicycle wheel trays to receivethe front and back wheels of a bike. The main tray assembly is pivotallyattached to a trailer hitch drawbar, allowing the assembly to pivotupward into a compact position behind a motor vehicle. The user mustreach under the main tray assembly to reach the pivot release bar.

b) The two wheel trays pivot into a parallel position over the drawbarfor compact shipping and storage without disassembly. The trays lock inthe deployed position by respective levers, but the user must rememberthis. They do not automatically lock.

c) An add-on tray assembly can be bolted to the main tray assembly tocarry a second bike or up to three bikes using two add-on assemblies.The user must reach under all tray assemblies to reach the tray assemblypivot release bar.

The present inventor also invented a quick-release drawbar mechanism asdisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,406,051 for use on his bike carrier. Helater devised and sold a drawbar with a screw-operated internal rod thatpushes a captive ball to extend from a side of the drawbar to lock it inthe tubular hitch receiver.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Improvements herein that apply to both the roof rack and hitch receiverversions of the inventor's bike carrier include the following:

a) Infinite adjustability of the cross member position along the wheelretention arms without a wrench using a known bike wheel quick releasemechanism to tighten and release the cross member anywhere alongelongated slots in the side arms of the retention arms.

b) The pawl of the wheel retention arm ratchet has an over-rotationstop.

Improvements herein that apply to the inventor's hitch receiverembodiment of the bike carrier include:

a) The drawbar has a spring-loaded push button that extends into thehitch receiver pin hole to both retain the drawbar and set its insertiondepth in the receiver. A translation screw moves a follower that pushesthe front of the drawbar upward against the roof of the tubular hitchreceiver. This combination provides redundant retention and properinsertion depth.

b) A lever on the head of the translation screw provides a constantlyattached wrench and a hole for a security lock that enforces properinsertion direction the lock.

c) A trigger bar on the back end of the main tray assembly controls thepivot of the assembly so the user does not need to stoop or kneel toreach the pivot release bar.

d) The add-on assembly has an add-on trigger bar that quickly latchesonto the trigger bar of the main tray assembly and provides a trigger atthe back of the add-on assembly so the user does not need to kneel downand reach under two or three tray assemblies to reach the pivot releasebar.

In combination the existing and new features on both the roof rack andhitch receiver versions of the present bike carrier provide:

(a) Retains the bike only by the tires. Does not scratch the bike frame;

(b) Quick infinite adjustment for bike wheels of different diameterswithout tools;

(c) Bike loads/unloads quickly using only one operation;

(d) No straps or other secondary retention needed;

(e) Locks the bike steering to prevent damage;

(f) Prevents the wheels from spinning in the vehicle slipstream.

In combination the existing and new features on the hitch receiverversion of the present bike carrier provide:

(a) Mounts quickly and securely to a trailer hitch receiver on a motorvehicle;

(b) Add-on tray assembly for a second bike couples quickly to main trayassembly without tools;

(c) A main tray assembly for carrying a first bike and add-on trayassemblies for additional bikes, both assemblies have a pivot selectiontrigger at the back end of the assemblies;

(d) The two wheel trays for each bike quickly pivot between an aligneddeployed configuration and a parallel compact shipping and storageconfiguration with automatic locking in the operational configuration.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is explained in the following description in view of thedrawings that show:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a bike carrier for a car roof rack according toaspects of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view along line 2-2 of FIG. 1, showing a bike tireretained by a wheel retention arm.

FIG. 3 is a view as in FIG. 2 showing the wheel retention arm adjustedfor a smaller tire diameter.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view along line 3-3 of FIG. 1, showing aspects ofthe ratchet mechanism for the wheel retention arm.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the wheel retention arm ratchetmechanism.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along a line 6-6 of FIG. 4 with pawllocked.

FIG. 7 is a view as in FIG. 6 with pawl released.

FIG. 8 is a back view of a bike carrier for a trailer hitch receiveraccording to aspects of the invention.

FIG. 9 is a top view of the bike carrier of FIG. 8 with the wheelretainer arms folded down to the wheel trays.

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view of the drawbar and a main tray assemblytaken on line 10-10 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken on line 11-11 of FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a bottom view of the drawbar and main tray assembly.

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view of a second drawbar embodiment in aninsert/release position.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view taken on line 14-14 of FIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken on line 15-15 of FIG. 13.

FIG. 16 is a side sectional view of the second drawbar embodiment in atightened position.

FIG. 17 is a transverse sectional taken on line 17-17 of FIG. 16.

FIGS. 18-20 are a sequence of sectional views taken along line 18-18 ofFIG. 9 showing the operation of coupling an add-on tray assembly to amain tray assembly.

FIG. 21 is a sectional view of the add-on tray assembly coupled to themain tray assembly as viewed from line 10-10 of FIG. 9 after coupling.

FIG. 22 shows a view as in FIG. 21 with the add-on trigger being pulledback, releasing the pivot lock bar from the pivot slot via the maintrigger and main trigger bar.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a translation screw with attachedlever.

FIG. 24 is a partial top view of a side plate of the main tray assemblyand a side plate of the add-on tray assembly locked together with apadlock.

FIG. 25 is a sectional view of a 1.25 inch drawbar with a 2-inch drawbaradapter.

FIG. 26 is a top view of a main tray assembly with trays folded forshipping.

GLOSSARY

“Bike” herein means a two-wheeled vehicle, including velocipede bicyclesand motorcycles.

“Front” and “back” are oriented with a motor vehicle to which the bikecarrier is attached. Thus, a “side view” of the roof rack carrier showsthe side of a bike in the carrier, while a “back view” of the hitchreceiver carrier shows the side of the bike.

“H-shaped or inverted U-shaped” herein includes a range of positions ofthe cross member on the wheel retention arms. If the cross member is atthe top of the side members it becomes an inverted U-shape.

“Longitudinal” means parallel to the longest dimension of the subjectcomponent.

“Transverse” means perpendicular to the longest dimension of the subjectcomponent.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The inventor has devised improvements to the “Fast-Loading ProtectiveBike Rack” described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,074. The improvements arebeneficial individually and especially in combination, making the bikecarrier easier to use, easier to manufacture, and lighter. Two mainversions of the bike carrier are disclosed: a) a carrier for a car roofrack; and b) a carrier for a trailer hitch receiver.

FIG. 1 is a side view of a bike carrier 1A mounted on a car roof rack101. An elongated horizontal tray 2 receives the tires 16, 17 of a bike3. The tray 2 may be a V-channel or U-channel extrusion that is concaveupward. A wheel retention arm 4, 5 is attached pivotally 6, 7 near eachend of the tray. The retention arms are H-shaped or inverted U-shaped aslater shown. Each wheel retention arm may have elongated slots 9 toadjust the position of a cross member (later shown) for different wheeldiameters via a quick-release cam lever 11. Each retention arm 4, 5pivots inward 14, 15 until the cross member contacts the tire 16, 17 ofthe nearest wheel. The arm is locked against this tire by a ratchetmechanism 20, 21 acting through a stay 22, 24 connected between the pawland the retention arm 4, 5. This causes the tires to be bracketedbetween the arms, securing the bike in all directions by its tires. Theratchet mechanism prevents outward pivoting of the wheel retention armsunless intentionally released. The retention arms pivot fully inward tothe tray when the rack is not in use. Once adjusted and positioned for agiven bike size, only one of the retention arms needs to be pivoted forinsertion and removal of a bike of that size.

Each arm contacts the tire of the nearest wheel at a point above andoutward from the wheel axle with respect to the bike, preferably forexample about 45 degrees upward from hub level. This brackets and blocksthe bike from moving, both along the tray and vertically. The bike isheld firmly in place and cannot bounce upward or roll off the tray. Thearms contact only the tires.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1, showing atire 16 in the tray 2 and a wheel retention arm 4 contacting the tirewith a cross member 25. The wheel retention arm has two side arms 4A, 4Battached by coaxial pivot points 6A, 6B to opposite sides of the tray 2.The cross member 25 is attached between the two side arms through theslots 9 (FIG. 1) in the side arms by means of a quick release cam lever11 mechanism. This can be a conventional quick release device forattaching bicycle wheels to the forks of a bicycle. Preferably, the sidearms 4A, 4B should have a spacing at or near a widest conventionalbicycle dropout spacing so wide tires can be accommodated and anoff-the-shelf wheel quick release device can be used. The cross memberincludes a retention arm separator 27, which may be formed in a bi-conicshape with a waist to receive a bike tire as shown.

FIG. 3 shows the same viewpoint as FIG. 2, with the cross member 25moved downward for a smaller tire 30. The cam lever 11 is shown in analternate loosened position 11B. The cross member 25 and side arms 4A,4B form an H-shaped or inverted U-shaped configuration, depending on theposition of the cross member. The quick-release mechanism is shownpartly in section to show the shaft 31 or skewer passing through theseparator 27. The shaft 31 passes through the slots 9 and the separator27 from the cam 28 to a nut 29. Cam tension on the shaft is adjustedwith the nut 29, then the nut does not need to be loosened again, andcan remain at a setpoint, optionally with assistance from a threadlocking compound or other means.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 1, showingaspects of the ratchet mechanism 20, more fully shown later. A linearratchet bar 34 has a pawl assembly 36 that holds a finger 38 against thebottom side of the ratchet bar. A pawl release lever 40 releases thefinger from the ratchet bar. An over-rotation stop 42 preventsover-rotating the pawl assembly in the release direction as laterdescribed.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the linear ratchet mechanism 20 thatholds the wheel retention arm 4 tight against a tire. The wheelretention arm has two parallel side arms 4A, 4B attached to respectiveopposite sides of the tray 2 at an end of the tray as shown. The wheelretention arm 4 is held against the tire by a stay 22 between theretention arm and the pawl frame 36 of the ratchet mechanism 20. Alinear ratchet bar 34 has a bottom side with teeth 35. Upward force on arelease arm 40 releases the pawl, allowing the retention arm 4 to bepivoted outward to mount or dismount a bike in the tray.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the ratchet mechanism 20 taken on line 6-6of FIG. 4. A torsion spring 44 urges the pawl frame 36 in a direction 48that moves the pawl finger 38 against the teeth 35. Tension on the stay22 is caused by the cross member of the retention arm 4 being jammedagainst the bike tire. This tension jams the finger 38 against the teethdue to a follower 50 on the top side of the ratchet bar acting as afulcrum. Any force that tries to pivot the retention arm outward locksthe pawl on the ratchet harder.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the ratchet mechanism as in FIG. 4, but inthe release position. Upward manual force on the pawl lever 40 (FIG. 5)opposes and overrides the force 46 of the torsion spring 44, and pivots52 the pawl frame 36 to move the finger 38 away from the teeth 35. Ifthe pawl frame is over-rotated 54, the finger 38 will drag along theteeth during outward pivot of the wheel retention arm to release thebike. An over-rotation stop 42 prevents this by contacting the top ofthe ratchet bar 34, stopping the rotation 52 of the pawl frame 36 causedby a user lifting the lever 40. It can be stopped at the maximumdistance of the finger 38 from the bottom of the ratchet bar.

Unlike a conventional ratchet, the pawl teeth 35 may be shallow andsymmetric, and may be produced by a series of side mill cuts, where eachmilling produces a cylindrical concavity as little as 0.010 inch (0.25mm) deep. This is because the pawl design as shown works even with atoothless ratchet bar and finger of aluminum, but providing shallowteeth/valleys as shown improves the grip of the pawl finger 38 on theratchet bar 34.

FIG. 8 is a back view of a bike carrier 1B for a trailer hitch receiveraccording to aspects of the invention. A bike 3 is mounted on thecarrier by placing its wheels 16, 17 in respective wheel trays 60, 61.These trays may be extrusions such as U-channel or V-channel that areconvex upward to retain the wheels and lock the steering of the bike.This bike carrier has the same elements and operation as the roof rackcarrier described above, but includes additional elements related tomounting the carrier to the receiver hitch of a vehicle. It may providea separate tray 60, 61 for each wheel enabling the trays to be foldedtogether over the drawbar assembly for compact shipping and storage.

FIG. 9 is a top view of the bike carrier of FIG. 8 with the wheelretainer arms 4A, 4B and 5A, 5B folded down to the wheel trays 60, 61. Atrailer hitch drawbar 64A is attached to the trays via a drawbarassembly 66 comprising a horizontal cross bar 68 attached to thedrawbar, and left and right vertically oriented side plates 70, 71attached to the cross bar. The drawbar has a spring-loaded push button65A that locks the drawbar in the hitch receiver. It has a mechanismoperated by a lever 96 as later described for tightening the drawbar inthe receiver. A padlock 69 pay secure the drawbar in the receiver. Amain tray assembly 75 comprises left and right tray assembly plates 78,79 attached to the drawbar assembly on a horizontal pivot axis 80,allowing the trays 60, 61 to pivot upward about the axis 80 to a compactupward position behind the motor vehicle. The pivot axis may beimplemented by a pivot axle journaled in a pivot cross member 81 betweenthe side plates 70, 71 that serves as a structural member of the drawbarassembly. The pivot position is locked with a pivot lock bar 82 operatedby a trigger bar 84 via a manual trigger 85 at the back of the main trayassembly 75. The trays 60, 61 are mounted to the main tray assembly 75by respective pivot attachments 62, 63, so they can pivot between theoperational co-aligned laterally extending position shown and a compactparallel position over the drawbar assembly 66 for shipping and storageas later shown.

An add-on tray assembly 110 with left and right side plates 115, 116 isshown in position for coupling to the main tray assembly 75 to support asecond bike on the carrier. An add-on trigger 134 is provided at theback of the add-on tray assembly for convenient control of the carrierpivot lock bar 82. The add-on trigger is linked to the pivot lock bar 82via an add-on trigger bar 108 with a latch 112 that hooks over the maintrigger 85, thus controlling the main trigger bar 84 as later described.Left and right upward facing slots 117, 118 receive an upper couplingbar 120 on the main tray assembly as later described. Left and rightdownward facing coupling hooks 123, 124 on the add-on assembly hook alower coupling bar (not seen here) on the main tray assembly as laterdescribed.

First and second spools 99, 100 may extend laterally outward from themain tray assembly 75 and the add-on assembly respectively to retain thehasp of a lock in a waist of the spools, preventing unauthorized removalof the add-on tray assembly from the main tray assembly as later shown.The spools may be formed as washers or spacers for a machine screw thatconnects a horizontal coupling bar 120 of the main assembly 75 and ahorizontal cross bar 131 of the add-on assembly to a respective sideplate 78, 115. These may be upper or lower bars.

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view of the drawbar 64A, drawbar assembly66, and main tray assembly 75 taken on line 10-10 of FIG. 9. Thisdrawbar embodiment 64A is suitable for a 1.25 inch hitch receiver forexample. A cross bar 68 is attached to the drawbar, and a right plate 71is attached to the cross bar. The main tray assembly 75 is pivotallyconnected 80 to the drawbar assembly. The right plate 71 and mirrorimage left plate (not shown here) provide a selection of pivot lockslots 86A-C. A pivot lock bar 82 is slidably mounted on the main trayassembly 75, and falls into a selected one of these slots under force ofa spring 83. A trigger bar 84 extends from the lock bar to a trigger 85at the back of the main tray assembly 75. Pulling the trigger releasesthe pivot bar 82 from the slot 86A. The trigger bar 84 is slidablymounted through trigger cross bars 89 in the main tray assembly 75. Thetrigger bar may have a floating connection 90 to the pivot lock bar. Forexample, clearance 90 may be provided in the trigger bar 84 aroundscrews 91 that couple the trigger bar to the lock bar. The floatingconnection may allow at least 0.1 or 0.2 degrees of angular play betweenthe pivot lock bar and the trigger bar in a longitudinal vertical plane.Such connection allows the lock bar 82 to slide easily into and out ofthe slots 86A-C without binding, despite minimal clearance between thelock bar and the slot. A tray lock bar 92 is slidably mounted in avertical slot 87, and is spring loaded upward to a stopping pointimmediately beside the trays, as shown here by right tray 61. The traylock bar is pushed down to release the trays so they can be rotatedtogether over the drawbar assembly 66 via their pivot connections 93 tothe main tray crossbar 94.

The drawbar 64A has a translation screw 95 operated by a lever 96 tomove a follower 97A along a ramp 98 or angled slot to jam the front endof the drawbar upward against the inner surface of the hitch receiver(not shown), locking it therein. The front end of the drawbar is pushedin the same direction as the weight of the bike carrier pivots it withinthe receiver, so bouncing of the motor vehicle does not stress thefollower or screw.

The lever 96 may be locked with a padlock 69 inserted through a hole 96Ain the lever so that the case of the padlock extends over the crossbar68. This blocks lever rotation by the case of the padlock hitting thecrossbar, securing the drawbar to the receiver. The direction of lockinsertion may be enforced by countersinking 96B the hole 96A only on theback end (right end in this view) and/or by filleting 96C the end of thelever on only the back edge. The hole 96A is spaced from end of thelever by an amount that barely allows the padlock to close when the caseof the lock is forward as shown. The padlock cannot be closed in theother direction due to the curvature of the hasp interfering with theunchamfered front edge of the hole 96B and/or the un-filleted front edgeof the end of the lever. This orientation of the lock prevents the leverfrom being moved past the crossbar by the top of the hasp fittingbetween them. FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken on line 11-11 of FIG. 10showing the spring-loaded push button 65A in the drawbar 64A.

FIG. 12 is a bottom view of the drawbar 64A, drawbar assembly 66, andmain tray assembly 75 as previously described. Upper and lower couplingbars 120, 126 are used as later describe to attach an add-on trayassembly to carry a second bike on the same carrier. The lower couplingbar 126 is cut away to more clearly see the end of the trigger bar 84. Anut 99 on a coupling bar 120 or 126 may be formed with a waist so as tohold the hasp of a padlock in conjunction with an adjacent nut on theadd-on tray assembly to secure the add-on tray assembly to the main trayassembly 75 as later shown.

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view of a second drawbar embodiment 64B inan insert/release position. This embodiment is suitable for example fora 2-inch hitch receiver. FIG. 14 is a sectional view taken on line 14-14of FIG. 13. A crank lever 96 turns a translation screw 95 to move afollower 97B along a ramp or angled slot 102 to extend the followerbelow the drawbar as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, pushing the front end ofthe drawbar upward against the upper inner surface of the hitch receiver(not shown). The translation screw may be mounted through a pivotelement 104 to accommodate the changing angle of the screw shaft. Thecrank lever may have a hole 96A for a lock hasp.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken on line 15-15 of FIG. 13, showing apush button 65B urged laterally outward from a side of the drawbar 64B.When the drawbar 64B is inserted into a hitch receiver, this button 65Bfalls into a hole in a side wall of the receiver that is conventionallyavailable for a through-pin.

FIGS. 18-20 are a sequence of sectional views taken along line 18-18 ofFIG. 9 to illustrate the operation of mounting of an add-on trayassembly 110 to a main tray assembly 75. Upper and lower horizontalcoupling bars 120, 126 are disposed at the back of the main trayassembly 75. The add-on tray assembly has mirror image left and rightside plates—left 115 and right 116—the right plate 116 being shown here.Left and right upward facing coupling slots 118 are disposed at a topfront part of the add-on assembly. Left and right downward facingpivoting coupling hooks 124 are disposed at a bottom front part of theadd-on assembly. In FIG. 18 the add-on assembly is moved diagonallyupward 122 as shown so that the upward facing coupling slots 118 slipover the upper coupling bar 120 of the main tray assembly 75.

FIG. 19 shows the add-on assembly being rotated downward 127 around theupper coupling bar 120 of the main tray assembly in the upward facingcoupling slots 118 so that the coupling hooks 124 engage the lowerhorizontal coupling bar by climbing over it. At the same time, the lowercoupling bar 126 slips into forward facing slots 129 in the forwardbottom end of the add-on assembly. The coupling hook 124 has an uppersurface 128 with a geometry that causes it to climb 125 over the lowercoupling bar 126 when pressed against it during rotation 127 of theadd-on assembly. This climbing overrides the force of a spring 130 untilthe hook falls over the lower coupling bar under the spring force. Theadd-on assembly is now firmly locked onto the main tray assembly, withno tools required. To release it, a handle 132 between respectivebackward extending levers of the left and right coupling hooks is pusheddownward, and the motions of FIGS. 19 and 18 are reversed. The couplingand decoupling operations can be done quickly. FIG. 20 shows theresulting coupling of the add-on tray assembly to the main trayassembly. The coupling is positive and strong enough to withstandbouncing of the motor vehicle with bikes mounted on both assemblies 75,110 and a further add-on assembly if needed.

FIG. 21 is a side sectional view of the add-on tray assembly coupled tothe main tray assembly as viewed from line 10-10 of FIG. 9 aftercoupling. This shows how the trigger bar 84 of the main tray assembly 75is operated by an add-on trigger 134 at the back of the add-on trayassembly for convenience. A spring 83 urges the pivot lock bar into theslots 86A-C. Multiple add-on tray assemblies can be chained in sequence,each one interconnected to the trigger bar of the previous assembly. Theadd-on trigger bar 108 has a latch 112 mounted on a pivot attachment 114and has a finger grip 119. This latch is seen from the top in FIG. 9.FIG. 22 shows a view as in FIG. 21 with the add-on trigger 134 beingpulled back, releasing the pivot lock bar 82 from the pivot slot 86A viathe main trigger 85.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a translation screw 95 with attachedlever 96. The translation screw may be a conventional bolt with a head95A having external flats as shown. The lever 96 may be formed as awrench, having a depression 96E with opposed internal flats matching andreceiving the opposed external flats of the bolt head. A bolt hole 96Dis in the bottom of the depression. The lever 96 slides over the boltfrom the end opposite the head until the head bottoms in the depression,where it is bracketed by the internal flats. The lever 96 is retained onthe bolt 95 by the bolt head, and will not come off without removing thebolt from the drawbar, which cannot be done if the drawbar is tight inthe receiver and the lever is locked as previously described. This leverdesign enables use of a conventional bolt for the translation screwwhile providing an attached lever for turning the screw and security.The opposite end of the lever has a hole 106 for the hasp of a lock.

FIG. 24 is a partial top view of a side plate 78 of the main trayassembly and a side plate 115 of the add-on tray assembly when the twoassemblies are coupled. Two spools 99, 100 extend outward from theserespective side plates, and are adjacent. A hasp 140 of a lock 141 fitsin the waist of the spools, locking them together. The spools may beformed as nuts, washers, or spacers for a machine screw that connects ahorizontal coupling bar 120 of the main assembly 75 and a horizontalcross bar 131 of the add-on assembly to a respective side plate 78, 115.These may be upper or lower coupling bars. Upper bars 120 and 131 areshown here.

FIG. 25 is a transverse sectional view of a 1.25 inch drawbar 64A with a2-inch drawbar adapter 150. The adapter may have an inverted U-shape insection as shown, and may be laterally asymmetric to provide space for apush button 65C. A spring 152 in the adapter for the button may be around wire that loops around the back of the button in a groove thereinas shown and extends forward or backward in an extruded chamber 154 ofthe drawbar, providing two parallel wires acting as both a leaf springand a button retainer.

FIG. 26 is a top view of a main tray assembly with trays 60, 61 foldedforward about their pivotal attachments 62, 63 for shipping. No assemblyis required by the user on receipt. They just unfold the trays, whichautomatically lock in the open position via tray lock bar 92.

The drawbar designs 65A, 65B, and the drawbar adapter 150 may be usedwith other accessories attachment to a trailer hitch receiver besidesbike carriers, such as a lawnmower carrier, spray equipment, a tailgatetable set, or a barbeque grill as examples.

While various embodiments of the present invention have been shown anddescribed herein, such embodiments are provided by way of example only.Numerous variations, changes and substitutions may be made withoutdeparting from the invention herein. Accordingly, it is intended thatthe invention be limited only by the spirit and scope of the appendedclaims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A bike carrier for a tubular trailer hitchreceiver on a motor vehicle, the bike carrier comprising: a drawbarassembly comprising a drawbar for the tubular trailer hitch receiver; amain bike carrying tray assembly attached to the drawbar assembly; ahorizontal upper coupling bar and a horizontal lower coupling bar on aback end of the main bike carrying tray assembly; an add-on bikecarrying tray assembly comprising a top front end with left and rightupward facing coupling slots that slip onto the upper coupling bar ofthe main bike carrying tray assembly; and a bottom front end of theadd-on bike carrying tray assembly comprising left and right forwardfacing coupling slots and left and right downward facing pivotingcoupling hooks; wherein the coupling hooks each comprise a top surfacewith a geometry that causes them to climb over the lower coupling barwhen pressed against it during a downward rotation of the add-onassembly about the upper horizontal coupling bar in the upward facingcoupling slots, wherein said climbing overrides a spring force on thecoupling hooks until they fall over the lower coupling bar under thespring force, thus coupling the add-on bike carrying tray assembly ontothe main bike carrying tray assembly; wherein, during said downwardrotation, the forward facing coupling slots slip onto the lower couplingbar; wherein the combination of the coupling hooks and slots on theadd-on assembly engaging the upper and lower coupling bars of the mainbike carrying tray assembly lock the add-on bike carrying tray assemblyto the main bike carrying tray assembly.
 2. The bike carrier of claim 1,further comprising: a coupling hook release lever extending backwardfrom each of the coupling hooks; a handle extending between the couplinghook release levers; wherein a downward force on the handle pivots thecoupling hooks upward about a pivot axis of each coupling hook,releasing the coupling hooks from the lower coupling bar on the maintray assembly.
 3. The bike carrier of claim 1, wherein the drawbarassembly comprises: a horizontal crossbar attached to a back end of thedrawbar; left and right vertically oriented pivot plates attached torespective left and right ends of the crossbar, each pivot platecomprising a plurality of pivot lock slots providing a plurality ofpairs of opposed pivot lock slots on the pivot plates; wherein the mainbike carrying tray assembly is pivotally mounted onto the pivot plates;and further comprising: a pivot lock bar on the main bike carrying trayassembly that slides into a selected pair of the pivot lock slots underforce of a spring in the main bike carrying tray assembly; a maintrigger bar slidably mounted in the main bike carrying tray assembly andattached to the pivot lock bar; and a main trigger attached to the maintrigger bar at a back end of the main bike carrying tray assembly;wherein pulling the main trigger slides the pivot lock bar out of theselected pair of pivot lock slots, enabling the carrying rack to bepivoted upward into a compact position behind the motor vehicle, anddownward into a deployed position for carrying a bike, wherein thecompact and deployed positions are each lockable by a respective pair ofthe pivot lock slots.
 4. The bike carrier of claim 3, further comprisinga floating connection between the main trigger bar and the pivot lockbar that transmits linear motion from the main trigger bar to the pivotlock bar while providing at least 0.1 degree of angular play between thepivot lock bar and the trigger bar in a longitudinal vertical plane ofthe main trigger bar, enabling the pivot lock bar to slide in and out ofeach of the selectable slots without binding.
 5. The bike carrier ofclaim 3, where the main trigger bar is attached to the pivot lock bar bya floating connection comprising screws threaded into one of the maintrigger bar or the pivot lock bar and extending into holes withclearance around the screws in the respective other of the pivot lockbar or the main trigger bar.
 6. The bike carrier of claim 3, furthercomprising; an add-on trigger bar slidably mounted in the add-on bikecarrying tray assembly; an add-on trigger on the add-on trigger bar at aback end of the add-on bike carrying tray assembly; a latch on a frontend of the add-on trigger bar that latches onto the main trigger whenthe add-on bike carrying tray assembly is coupled to the main bikecarrying tray assembly; wherein operating the add-on trigger at the backend of the add-on bike carrying tray assembly operates the pivot lockbar at a front end of the main bike carrying tray assembly via the maintrigger and main trigger bar.
 7. The bike carrier of claim 1, whereinthe main bike carrying tray assembly further comprises: first and secondbike wheel carrying trays for holding respective first and second wheelsof a bike; each bike wheel carrying tray pivotally mounted to the mainbike carrying tray assembly for pivoting of said trays between aco-aligned laterally extending operational position and a forwardposition for compact shipping and storage; a wheel tray lock barslidably mounted in the main bike carrying tray assembly and springloaded upward to a stopping point immediately beside the bike wheelcarrying trays, automatically and releasably locking said trays in theoperational position.
 8. The bike carrier of claim 1, furthercomprising: a first security spool extending laterally outward from themain bike carrying tray assembly at a back end thereof, the firstsecurity spool comprising a first security waist; and a second securityspool extending laterally outward from the add-on bike carrying trayassembly at a front end thereof, the second security spool comprising asecond security waist; wherein the first and second security waists areadjacent to each other when the main and add-on bike carrying trayassemblies are coupled, and the adjacent security waists retain a haspof a lock that is not removable therefrom without unlocking it.
 9. Thebike carrier of claim 8, wherein the first security spool is formed as awasher or spacer for a machine screw that connects the upper or lowerhorizontal coupling bar of the main bike carrying tray assembly to aleft or right side plate of the main bike carrying tray assembly, andthe second spool is formed as a washer or spacer for a machine screwthat connects a corresponding upper or lower crossing member of theadd-on bike carrying tray assembly to a respective left or right sideplate of the add-on bike carrying tray assembly.
 10. The bike carrier ofclaim 1, wherein the drawbar further comprises: a manual push buttonthat extends from a side wall of the drawbar under force of a spring inthe drawbar into a hole in a side wall of the receiver, locking thedrawbar in the receiver; a translation screw mounted longitudinallythrough the drawbar, the translation screw comprising a back endoperable to turn the screw and a front end with translation threads; athreaded follower on the translation threads; and a ramp or guide in thedrawbar that ramps or guides the follower against a bottom wall of thereceiver when the translation screw is turned, tightening the drawbar inthe receiver.
 11. The bike carrier of claim 1 wherein the drawbar has atransverse section dimensioned to fit within a first size of hitchreceiver tube, and further comprising: an adapter dimensioned to fitwithin a second larger size of hitch receiver tube, the adaptercomprising a length of metal channel having an inverted U-shapedtransverse section with interior dimensions that receive the drawbar;wherein the adapter is laterally asymmetric, having a thicker left orright wall comprising an adapter push button that is urged laterallyoutward by a spring in said thicker left or right wall.
 12. A bikecarrier for a tubular trailer hitch receiver on a motor vehicle, thebike carrier comprising: a drawbar assembly comprising a drawbar for thetubular trailer hitch receiver; a main bike carrying tray assemblyattached to the drawbar assembly; a horizontal upper coupling bar and ahorizontal lower coupling bar on a back end of the main bike carryingtray assembly; an add-on bike carrying tray assembly comprising a topfront end with left and right upward facing coupling slots that sliponto the upper coupling bar of the main bike carrying tray assembly; anda bottom front end of the add-on bike carrying tray assembly comprisingleft and right forward facing coupling slots and a releasablespring-loaded hook mechanism that positively engages the main bikecarrying tray assembly during a downward rotation of the add-on assemblyabout the upper horizontal coupling bar in the upward facing couplingslots wherein the forward facing coupling slots slip onto the lowercoupling bar.
 13. The bike carrier of claim 12, wherein thespring-loaded releasable hook mechanism comprises a downward facingpivoting coupling hook; wherein the coupling hook comprises a topsurface with a geometry that causes it to climb over the lower couplingbar when pressed against it during the downward rotation of the add-onassembly about the upper horizontal coupling bar in the upward facingcoupling slots, wherein said climbing overrides a spring force on thecoupling hook until it falls over the lower coupling bar under thespring force, thus coupling the add-on bike carrying tray assembly ontothe main bike carrying tray assembly; wherein the combination of thecoupling hook and the coupling slots on the add-on assembly engaging theupper and lower coupling bars of the main bike carrying tray assemblylock the add-on bike carrying tray assembly to the main bike carryingtray assembly.
 14. The bike carrier of claim 13, further comprising: acoupling hook release lever extending from the coupling hook; wherein aforce on the release lever pivots the coupling hook upward about a pivotaxis of the coupling hook, releasing the coupling hook from the lowercoupling bar on the main tray assembly.
 15. The bike carrier of claim13, wherein the coupling hook comprises: left and right coupling hookswith respective left and right release levers interconnected by a commonhandle; wherein a downward force on the handle pivots the left and rightcoupling hooks upward about a pivot axis of the coupling hooks,releasing them from the lower coupling bar on the main tray assembly.